Port Austin apartment fire begins in closet

PORT AUSTIN — A pile of clothes somehow caught on fire in a closet, causing an estimated $10,000 worth of damage at an apartment located at 299 Grindstone Road over the weekend.

According to Port Austin Fire Chief Don Zimmerman, firefighters were called to the scene around 1:05 a.m. Saturday morning to Bent Tree North Apartments. Zimmerman said the fire appeared to have originated in the closet of one of the rooms, but officials say the cause is undetermined.

"We just don't know how, because there was nothing in there to cause it to start on fire," said Zimmerman.

Zimmerman said tenants in the apartment knocked the fire down with a couple of extinguishers prior to firefighters' arrival. The complex fire system was activated and everyone was evacuated at the time of arrival.

No injuries were reported. Smoke and water damage was contained to just the one apartment.

Firefighters were on scene for about an hour. The Port Austin department was assisted by the Kinde Fire Department, Port Austin Police Department, Huron County Sheriff's Department and Thumb EMS.